Container



May 9, 1944. R. E. MOYER CONTAINER Filed Aug, 12, 1940 Patented May 9,1944 i; -io,N1TED sTA'res ,ATENT j orrlcs CONTAINER ltalph E. Moyer, NewBuffalo; Mich, assignor to Kidd, Dater & Price Grocery (30., BentonHarbor, Michqa corporation of Michigan Application August 12, 1940,Serial No. 352,180

1 Claim. (01. 217-12) This invention relates in general to a basket orcontainer more particularly'described as a holder or carrier for fruits,berries and other small articles commonly sold, displayed or containedin a box or measure less than-abushel, such'asa 7 quart, peck orhalf-bushel.

An important object of the invention i's in the provision of abox,crate, or container of this kind which is made in flat form with aremovable top and bottom which is easily set up or assembled Whenever itis to be used.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an improvedhandle and fastening means for the cover.

A still further object of the invention is in the provision of aremovable bottom so that fruit or other material may be packed in thecontainer upside down and the bottom placed thereon when the containeris filled.

Other objects of the invention will appear in the specification and willbe apparent from the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is aperspective of a container in accordance with this invention which showsthe cover and handle attachment;

Fig. 2 is a development of the side walls forming the container of Fig.1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom view;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the bottom showing the attachment of thecross piece; and

Fig. 5 is another sectional detail of the bottom showing the locktherefor.

The ordinary type of berry box or basket is either larger at the topthan at the bottom or is rounded at the ends so that it takes up morespace than necessary and does not stack compactly when it is filled. Formany types of fruits and vegetables, it is desirable to open the packageor container to display the condition of the fruit or goods therein andif the top is removable, the arrangement or assembly of the top layer isdisturbed which detracts from its appearance. ,By providing a removablebottom which may be locked in place, the container may be filled fromthe bottom with the top appiied to the container and inverted, thecontainer then filled from the underside and the bottom applied thereto,and if desired, a filled package of this kind may be inverted at anytime and access had to the interior from the bottom for inspection andexamination without disturbing the upper facing layer at the top of thecontainer.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing, a berry box or crate ofrectangular dimensions comprises rectangular sides 6 and ends I,

each comprising one or more thin strips 8 of Wood veneer or the like,cut to shape and size and connected at one end by continuous bendablehoop 9 and at the other end, short rim sections [0 and II. l

' In the side walls, the stripsare usually overlapped and the rims andhoop are secured thereto by staples l2 which are clinched through at theback and overlapping the junctures between the end and side sections Inand H.

At the inside of the bottom are end pieces l5 attached to the inner sideof the end sections by the staples, and connected to the opposite sidesin the same way are groove bottom strips l6 and I1, one of the strips asI! has notches l3 at the ends for seating a bottom therein.

The bottom comprises a number of longitudinally extending strips I9 tofit between ends of the container when the sides are assembled having anattached central cross piece 20 to fit between the side pieces andattached end pieces 2| wider than the bottom and the middle cross pieceso that one end thereof is seated in a groove 22 of the bottom strip I6,and the other end extends through the notch H3 in the opposite strip l1resting upon the upper side of the groove 23 therein. To secure thebottom in place, a pair of locking strips 24 with somewhat rounded endsare of a length sufficient to be seated in both of the grooves 22 and 23when the end pieces 2| of the bottom are seated in the notches l8. Byturning these locking strips into and out of engagement with thegrooves, the bottom is locked into and released from engagement with thestrips 16 and I1.

A lid or cover for the container comprises a plurality of longitudinalstrips 25 connected at the center and ends by cross piece 26 and isadapted to fit on top of the edge provided by the folded sides of thecontainer when it is assembled for use.

In order to connect the sides and ends of the container, the extremitiesare provided with interengaging staples 21 and 28 which project from theends of the connected sections and are bent over in engagement of eachother to lock them and the sections together. Extending upwardly on theouter faces of the sides are rounded ends of staples 29 which projectupwardly above the cover when it is placed on top of the container.Extending outwardly from the cover are corresponding staple loops 3!)through which the loops 29 are inserted and these projections onopposite sides are adapted to be engaged by upwardly bent extremities 3|of a wire handle 32 looped inwardly through the staples 29 and therebyholding the lid or cover in place. The handle is of suflicientresilience that it may be sprung into or out of engagement with theloops 29 and the extremities being bent upwardly, tend to draw the sidestogether in lifting or carrying the container with a load therein.

With this construction, a box or container of this kind is assembled infiat form for shipment and storage, and the other parts are ready forinstant assembly whenever needed. The con-, nected sides and ends arebent to rectangular shape and secured together at the corners, the

top is applied and the container inverted if it is to be filled from thebottom, and after filling, the bottom is applied and locked in place, orif desired, the bottom may first be applied and locked in place, thereceptacle filled from the top with no obstruction of handle orfastening means and when filled, the top is applied and secured in placeby the handle, v

Similar fastening means 29 and 30 may be applied at the ends of thecontainer and cover for additionally holding and looking it in place ifdesired. A measure of this kind will occupy the least space for thevolume enclosed, the containers may be nested tightly together incourses or tiers without loss of space between them and the handleofiers no obstruction for compact stacking as it will lie flatly againstthe cover when not in use.

Although this construction is described in connection with a berry boxor fruit container which is not intended for permanent use, and suchdevices are generally made of light or flimsy materials so that they areadapted as a knock-down form for reuse, a more substantial structure ofthis kind may be made for alternate use and knock-down purposes.

I claim: A container structure having rectangular closely connectedsides and ends open at the top and bottom, said sides having oppositeside strips at the bottom, a cover for the structure, means forattaching the cover to the sides and ends, a removable rectangularbottom comprising connecting cross slats with those at the endsextending beyond those between the ends, the opposite side strips at thebottom having grooves open at one side at each end for receiving theends of the said end cross slats and preventing the bottom from movinginwardly within the container and movable locking slats extending belowthe bottom and engageable at the ends with the grooves for holding thebottom in place.

- RALPH E. MOYER.

